Device for packing machines

ABSTRACT

A rotatable device operable by engagement with spaced, transverse creases in a longitudinal, moving web of packaging material, said device controlling means for performing an operation such as printing information on or punching holes in the web at specific places relative to the transverse creases.

[11] 3,788,028 14514 Jan.29, 1974 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS United States Patent Folkesson et a'l. l

[54] DEVICE FOR PACKING MACHINES [75] Inventors: Bertil Folkesson; Lennart Nilsson,

PATENTEUJAM 29 19M DEVICE FOR PACKING MACHINES The present invention concerns a device for packing machines, in particular for the control of working operations, e.g., printing, hole-punching etc., on a packing material web or forming, sealing or controlled feeding of the web, which is of the type that is provided with crease lines running transversely to the packing material web to facilitate the forming of the web by folding.

In modern packing technique frequently one-way packages of plastic-lined paper or similar foldable material, for example foam plastic are used, which material is wound off in the form of a web from a magazine roll, folded over to form a tube, the longitudinal edges of which are combined to a tight joint, whereupon the tube is filled with the intended filling material and sealed along narrow sealing regions located at a distance from one another. In cases where the packing units are to be given a permanent shape, e.g., the shape of a parallelepiped, it is customary to provide the packing material web in advance with crease lines which facilitate the folding to the desired outer contour. At least a part of these crease lines is arranged transversely across the web at a distance from one another, the pattern of the crease lines being repeated in a continuous series along the web.

Frequently opening directions are provided on packages of the type concerned here, e.g., tearing directions or holes which can be covered with tear-off covering wafers. These tearing directions or holes must naturally be placed in a certain specified spot on the package so that all opening directions are placed identically and on a suitable spot so as to facilitate the pouring off in connection with the emptying of the package. Furthermore, text of the type of a date mark etc may be printed on the packing units and in this case too the printed text must be placed on the same spot on all the packing units. The abovementioned opening directions and the printed text should thus be placed in register with the pattern of crease lines, which in a known manner can be done by providing colored guide marks on the packing material web, which can be picked up by a photocell device, which in turn can control the advance of the web in such a manner that the working operations such as the punching of opening directions and the printing of text can be done at the specified spot in relation to the pattern of crease lines.

The photo-cell devices of the abovementioned type are, however, relatively expensive and moreover it was found that in certain cases the photo-cell devices may be put out of order through the depositing of dust on the photo-cell element picking up the light or the light source breaking down. In such cases the position of the working operations in relation to the pattern of crease lines may be completely dislocated, which in turn can entail substantial waste, in that a large number of packing units have to be rejected. The abovementioned photo-cell element can be replaced in certain cases by a much simpler and operationally safer mechanical crease holding device, which picks up the position of the transverse creases ,on the web and which is controlled and actuated by the web and which at its operation gives off pulses or controls other devices which carry out the working operations indicated above on the packing material web. The device in accordance with the invention is characterized by a crease holding device, rotatable about an axle, which has at least two wing-shaped parts, each provided with at leastl one edge, which are intended to engage with the transverse crease lines of the web.

The invention will be described in the following with reference to the enclosed schematic drawing, in which FIG. 1 shows a packing material web provided with transverse crease lines,

FIG. 2a and 2b show a schematic side view of a device in accordance with the invention, and A FIG. 3 shows a schematic perspective view of the device in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 1 shows a packing material web l of the type which in a packing machine is formed to a tube in that the longitudinal edges are combined with one another to a joint and thereupon the tube is filled with the intended filling material closed by pressing flat and crosssealing in narrow regions which are at right angles to the tube axis, and that finally the tube formed is shaped around its contents in a mould to a permanent geometrical shape, e.g., a parallelepipedic shape. The packing material webs of the abovementioned type are often provided with crease lines facilitating the forming, at least some of which extend transversely to the web l. In a case where the packing material web l is to be converted to parallelepipedic packages it is appropriatev to provide the web 1 with transverse crease lines 30 which are arranged at a distance from one another, the distance B corresponding to the height of the finished package. The distance A corresponds to somewhat more than the transverse dimension of the finished package since the packing material within the zone A shall also include material for the formation of the said transverse sealing joints.

The web of packing material l may for example consist of a base layer of paper which on one or on both sides is provided with coats of thermoplastic material, but it is also possible of course for the web 1 to consist of a more complicated laminate, e.g., a metal foil layer, and the base material need not necessarily consist of paper, but it is quite possible for the base material to consist of a foldable plastic, e.g., foam plastic.

In FIG. 2a is shown a schematic side view of a device in accordance with the invention, the web of packing material being designated l, the periodically repeated crease lines provided on the web of packing material being desginated 30 anda magazine roll for the weblike packing material being designated 3l. The crease holding device which is freely rotatable about a horizontal axle is designated 2 and the guide rollers for the web 1 are designated 32 and 13 respectively. On the axle of the crease holding device 2 is arranged a program disc 9 with a cam 44, which is adapted so that it can act upon a contact device 41, which via an electric cable 42 is connected to a control unit 43.

The device shown in FIG. 2a can advantageously replace a substantially more expensive photo-cell regulating device and the function of the device is as follows.

During the operation of the packing machines, not shown in the drawing, the packing material is supplied continuously or intermittently, towards the packing machine and the packing material web l is drawn off the magazine roll 3l. The web 1 which is provided with the earlier mentioned crease lines 30 is passed over the guide rollers 32 and guided over the crease holding device 2 in such a manner that the edges of the crease holding device 2 will coincide with the said transverse crease lines` 30.

As can be seen from the figure, the crease holding device is dimensioned so that its transverse dimension corresponds to the distance A between neighboring crease lines and its longitudinal dimension corresponds to the distance B between neighbouring crease lines of the web 1. The web is passed further over a guide roller 13 and upwards towards the upper guide roller of packing machine, over which the web 1 in a manner not shown here is guided downwards with formation of the web to a tube.

By locating the guide rollers 13 and 32 in the manner as shown in FIG. 2a the web 1 will the whole time be in contact with at least two edges of the crease holding device 2 and the freewheeling crease holding device 2 will be driven by the web 1 so that a rotating movement is imparted to the crease holding device. Owing to the fact of the crease holding device 2 being dimensioned so that its edge measurement corresponds tol the distance between the crease lines 30 provided on the web 1, and owing to the fact of the web having a tendency to bend along the said crease lines, these will always be located at the edges of the crease holding device, about which the material web l is folded.

The crease holding device, it appears, has two wingshaped parts which project from either side of the axle of the crease holding device, and owing to its elongated shape the crease holding device 2 will not assume a rotatory movement the speed of rotation of which is proportional to the feed movement of the web, but the angular velocity of the crease holding device 2 will be greatest when its wings are situated perpendicular to the advancing web 1 and smallest when its wings are substantially parallel with the advancing web l.

By arranging a rotatable program disc 9 on the axle of the crease holding device 2 and by arranging some form of cam 44 on the said program disc 9 it is possible at the rotation of the crease holding device 2 to obtain via a contact device 4l contact pulses to a controller element 43 via an electric cable 42. The controller element 43 may then, as a function of the pulses received from the contact element 42, start the working operations on the packing material web 1 further along the web and so obtain these working operations located on the desired spot in relation to the pattern of crease lines 30 of the web. Such working operations may be for example the punching of holes of the discharge openings, the printing of date marks or other informative text, but it may also be working operations which are concerned with the forming of the package itself, e.g., the release of sealing press jaws so that these are applied on the tubes formed of the packing material web 1 on the correct spot in relation to the pattern of crease lines 30.

Beside the contact element 41 indicated here it is quite possible of course to use other types of contact elements, e.g., magnetic pick-up, pick-up by light beam etc. It was also found that it is not strictly necessary to have a crease holding device with a width A corresponding to the distance between the crease lines situated closest to one another, but it is also feasible to design the crease holding device 2 as a thin disc, which is arranged so about its axle that the disc projects on either side of the axle in the form of two wings. In this later case the distance between the tips of the so-called wings must be A+B instead of B.

It is also possible instead of two wings, as shown, to construct a crease holding device with three or more wings so that the crease holding device almost assumes the character of a wheel with projecting edges, over which edges the crease lines of the web locate themselves owing to their being bent over them when the web is passed over the crease holding device and drives 5 the same around.

In FIG. 2b and 3 is shown a special embodiment of the invention wherein the crease holding device 2 drives a stamping mechanism 18 by means of which a date mark, informative or advertising text can be applied on the packing material web l in register with the crease lines 30 thus also with any design which may have been printed in advance on the web l in register with the pattern of crease lines.

In place of the program disc 9 with associated contact element 44 and 41 the device in FIG. 2b is provided with a chain wheel 45 which is arranged on the angle of the crease holding device 2 and which is integral with the crease holding device. The chain wheel 45 is connected via a chain ll to another chain wheel 10, which via a carrier device which is shown in FIG. 3 can be coupled to a stamping wheel 18 which is provided with exchangeable stamping types. The stamping types on the stamping wheel 18 are inked by means of inking rollers 20, one of which dips into a vat of printing ink 34, which via a flexible tube 33 is connected to a storage tank 35 for the printing ink.

In the manner described previously a rotatory movement is imparted to the crease holding device 2 when the packing material web 1 of the packing machine is fed towards the packing machine, that is to say in the direction of the arrow. In the present case it is assumed that the packing material web l is to be provided with a marking of some kind, e.g. price marking, date marking or other informative text, which cannot be printed onto the packing material web in advance but which has to be applied to the same in connection with the packing operation. Itis also assumed that at the shaping of the design of the packing material web an empty space has been left, e.g., a widely delimited field within which the said marking is to take place. To ensure that the marking can be located to the said field, thus in register with the design on the packing material web l and its pattern of crease lines, it is necessary that the design or the pattern of crease lines should be picked up, which, as mentioned earlier, is done by means of a photo-cell device. By means of the device in accordance with FIG. 2b a relatively expensive photo-cell equipment with associated controller element can be substituted by a simple mechanical device, which is shown in greater detail in FIG. 3, where the essential details of the device are illustrated in a perspective view.

In the following the device in accordance with FIG. 2b and FIG. 3 will be described with reference to both the figures, and for greater clarity identical details in both figures have been given the same reference numbers.

In the more detailed FIG. 3 it is shown that the crease holding device 2 may consist of two parts bent into U- shape with relatively short raised edges 4. The distance between the edges 4 is marked A in FIG. 3 and this distance is thus the same as the distance between adjacent crease lines 30, which is marked A in FIG. l. Two mutually identical U-shaped parts 3 are arranged as projecting wings from the axle 6 with the help of rods 5 fixed to the axle 6, which at their ends are fixed to the said parts 3. The U-shaped parts 3 are thus arranged at identical distance from the axle 6 and parallel to the same. The two U-shaped parts 3 are also arranged parallel to one another. The axle 6 of the crease holding device 2 is supported rotatably in the stand 40 at the supporting points 8. The rods 5 which join the U- shaped parts 3 to one another are so long, that the distance between the projecting edge 4 of the one U- shaped part and the corresponding edge 4 of the other part, which is marked B in FIG. 3, corresponds to the longer distance between two adjacent crease lines on the web 1, which is also marked B in FIG. l.

The axle 6 at its one end is integral with a chain wheel 45, which is coupled via a chain 11 to a second chain wheel 10, which is fixed to an axle 15. The axle l5 is supported in the stand 14 and is connected at its one end to a carrier device which consists of a plate 16 projecting perpendicularly from the axle, and a roller 17 arranged on this plate eccentric to the axle 15.

The carrier device 16, 17 is adapted so that it can engage with a pin 22 which is fitted onto a marking roller 18. The marking roller is freely rotatable about an axle 19 and the roller is provided with a segment-shaped part 21 around which is milled a guide groove and in which guide groove is arranged a rubber ring 23 in such a manner that the front part of the rubber ring projects outside the surface of the marking roller 18. The marking roller 18 is provided moreover with printing types 24 which also project from the surface of the marking roller 18 and which are adapted so that they can be inked by an ink roller 20, which is adapted so as to roll against the marking roller 18. As can be best seen in FIG. 2b ink is transferred to the nking roller 20 from a second ink roller, which in its rotation dips into an ink vat 34 to which marking ink is supplied from a storage tank 3S via a flexible tube 33.

The device also has a guide roller 13 which also operates as a counter roller to the printing roller 18, and the function of the device is as follows.

When the packing material web 1, as indicated in FIG. 3, by dash-dotted lines, is advanced by the packing machine, the wings of the crease holding device as mentioned earlier, will fit with their front raised edges 4 into the transverse crease lines of the packing material web l which crease lines are folded over the said edges 4, and the crease holding device will be rotated by the web which is passed over the crease holding device and over a guide roller 13. As mentioned earlier the angular velocity will not become proportional to the velocity of advance of the web owing to the fact that the crease holding device can be likened to two projecting wings which can therefore not be compared with a wheel of constant radius. The crease holding device at its rotation will turn the chain wheel 45 and consequently also the chain wheel and the axle 1S, which by means of the carrier arrangement 16, 17 drives the marking roller.

The marking roller 18 is driven around the web 1 when the web passes between the guide roller 13 and that part of the marking roller 18 which is provided with the segment part 2l and the rubber ring 23 fitted theron. Since the rubber ring 23 projects outside the surface of the marking roller 18 sufficient pressure is created and consequently friction against the web for the marking roller 18 to be turnedaround by the web as long as the rubber ring 23 is in contact with the surface of the web. When the marking roller 18 is turned around by the web so far that the segment part 21 has passed by, the guide roller 13 ceases to make contact with the rubber ring 23 and consequently the pressure and friction against the web l cease. In this position the marking roller 18 is thus no longer turned around by the web but stops. The marking roller 18 is now rotated again however to engage once more with the web, in that the carrier roller 17 of the carrier mechanism 16 at the rotation of the axle 15 is brought into contact with the pin 22, as a result of which the marking roller 18 is rotated around.

The position of the carrier arm 16 in relation to the axle l5 and naturally then also in relation to the crease holding device 2 can be adjusted so that the marking roller 18 is made to engage anew with the web just at the spot on the web where the marking is intended to be applied. A precondition for the marking roller 18 to engage with the web l on exactly the right spot in relation to the transverse creases 30 of the web is of course, that the creases of the web are located rightly placed in relation to the edges 4 of the crease holding device 2, and that the carrier arm 16 which via the chain transmission is synchronized with the crease holding device 2 is set into such a position, that the marking roller 18 is made by the carrier roller 17 to engage with the web at the right moment.

The marking operation is chosen to be carried out during such a part of the movement of the web when the web l has a greater speed than the periphery speed of the marking roller 18 when the latter is driven via the axle 15. Since the web is at a greater speed than the marking roller 18 driven by the axle 15 via the carrier device 16, 17 the marking roller will be accelerated, after the rubber ring 23 has engaged the web l at the one edge of the segment 21, to the same speed as the web, whereby the contact with the roller 17 of the carrier is released and the marking roller 18 thus rotates at a greater speed than the axle 15.

The marking types 24 fitted on the marking roller 18 which project from the surface of the marking roller 18, did during the rotation of the marking roller 18 come into contact with the nking roller 20 which deposits marking ink on the marking types 24. When at the rotation of the marking roller 18 the marking types are put into contact with the web 1 a print will be made on the web l on the spot intended for the purpose. When the marking roller 18 through contact of the web 1 with the rubber ring 23 has come to the rear edge of the segment part 21 in the direction of rotation, contact will be released again between the rubber ring and the web l, as a result of which the marking roller is no longer turned around by the web 1 but stops. The carrier device I6 then again catchesup with the marking roller 18 and the carrier roller 17 of the carrier device is brought into contact with the carrier pin 22 of the marking roller 18, so that the marking roller 18 is turned around again to the engagement position with the web 1.

It is of course appropriate to make the marking type 24 readily exchangeable so that the marking can be varied without great difficulty, and it can also be suitable to double the marking roller 18, so that a marking roller provided with new marking text can be swivelled into position of the marking roller at the samel time as the previous marking roller is withdrawn. In this manner a flying exchange of marking rollers can be achieved whilst only one or a few units remainwithout marking.

lt was found that a device in accordance with the invention is very safe in its operation and moreover is very cheap. The pre-folding of the transverse crease lines of the web has proved to be an advantage in the subsequent forming operation when the packing material web is to be folded along the said crease lines, since this creasing is carried out more easily when the creases have previously been prized open. The embodiment shown and described here represent of course only one possible field of application of the device in accordance with the invention, and the device can certainly be used advantageously also for the carrying out of such working operations as hole punching, provision of tearing directions, application of wafers etc. Furthermore, the device in accordance with the invention can be used for controlling or adjusting the feeding of a previously printed material web in order to place its pre-printed decoration in register with the decoration on a second, pre-printed material web, in connection with the operation where the two material webs are joined and sealed together.

We claim:

l. A device for controlling the spacing along a continuous longitudinal, moving web at which an operation is to be carried out thereon, said web being formed of a packaging material having a plurality of spaced transverse creases provided therein, said device comprising rotatable means having an axis transverse to the longitudinal web and over which the web is drawn, said means including at least one longitudinally defined edge spaced from the axis of rotation and extending transversely of the web, whereby when the web is drawn over said rotatable means, the successive creases in the web successively engage at least one edge of said rotatable means to rotate said means about its axis,

means for carrying out an operationv on the web and means operable by said rotatable means for controlling said means for carrying out the desired operation on theweb at the desired spaced locations therealong.

2. A device as claimed in claim l wherein said rotatable means includes at least two longitudinally defined edges spaced from the axis of rotation and peripherally spaced according to the distance between adjacent transverse creases in the web whereby the web is drawn over said rotatable means at leastone of said at least two edges will always be in engagement with a crease in the web to thereby drive said rotatable means.

3. A device as claimed in claim l wh'erein the means for carrying out the operation on the web is electrically controlled and said control means operable by said rotatable means includes an electric switch for actuating the electrically controlled operation means.

4. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means for carrying out an operation on the web includes means for periodically starting and stopping said operation means and includes means controlled by said rotatable means for actuating said starting and stopping means.

S. A device as claimed in claim l wherein said rotatable means comprises two wing-like, longitudinal elements mounted parallel to the axis of rotation and spaced therefrom, each element having two spaced outer edges extending parallel to the axis of rotation for engagement with the creases of the web, the distance between the two spaced outer edges of one element and the distance between adjacent edges of the two elements in the peripheral direction being equal to the distances between the creases in the web. =t 

1. A device for controlling the spacing along a continuous longitudinal, moving web at which an operation is to be carried out thereon, said web being formed of a packaging material having a plurality of spaced transverse creases provided therein, said device comprising rotatable means having an axis transverse to the longitudinal web and over which the web is drawn, said means including at least one longitudinally defined edge spaced from the axis of rotation and extending transversely of the web, whereby when the web is drawn over said rotatable means, the successive creases in the web successively engage at least one edge of said rotatable means to rotate said means about its axis, means for carrying out an operation on the web and means operable by said rotatable means for controlling said means for carrying oUt the desired operation on the web at the desired spaced locations therealong.
 2. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rotatable means includes at least two longitudinally defined edges spaced from the axis of rotation and peripherally spaced according to the distance between adjacent transverse creases in the web whereby the web is drawn over said rotatable means at least one of said at least two edges will always be in engagement with a crease in the web to thereby drive said rotatable means.
 3. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means for carrying out the operation on the web is electrically controlled and said control means operable by said rotatable means includes an electric switch for actuating the electrically controlled operation means.
 4. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means for carrying out an operation on the web includes means for periodically starting and stopping said operation means and includes means controlled by said rotatable means for actuating said starting and stopping means.
 5. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rotatable means comprises two wing-like, longitudinal elements mounted parallel to the axis of rotation and spaced therefrom, each element having two spaced outer edges extending parallel to the axis of rotation for engagement with the creases of the web, the distance between the two spaced outer edges of one element and the distance between adjacent edges of the two elements in the peripheral direction being equal to the distances between the creases in the web. 